Couple seeks protection
HYDERABAD, June 22: The Sindh High Court, Hyderabad circuit bench, on Friday ordered production of nine private respondents in the court on June 26 in response to a petition filed by a newly-wed couple, seeking protection.
Nazia and her husband Fida Hussain through Ghulamullah Chang advocate have filed the petition, requesting the court to direct the Badin district police officer to provide protection to them and take action against their relatives as per law.
They said that the taluka police officer and the SHO of Tando Bago should be restrained from harassing them and no FIR should be lodged against Nazia’s husband because she had been not abducted by him.The respondents include Akbar Ali (girl’s father), Sher Ali, Noor Ali (her uncles), Aijaz Ali, Shahid Ali (her brothers), Fayaz Ali, Manzoor Ali, Abdul and Nadir Ali Khawaja.
Nazia said that she had married Fida Hussain in the court of the judicial magistrate-V on June 7. Her family and Khawaja community head Nadir Ali Khawaja were annoyed over the marriage because Fida Hussain was a poor man and did not belong to their community, she said.
Nazia said that her family was financially sound and had influence among government functionaries.
According to Nazia, after her marriage, the family members held a jirga which decided to take action against her and her husband. At the behest of her relatives, policemen raided the village of her husband and took Fida Hussain’s father Abdul Rehman and relatives Allah Jurio and Fateh Mohammad into custody.
They were kept at different police stations and subjected to torture to force them to return Nazia to her parents with the threat that otherwise, they would be implicated in cases of heinous crimes, she said.
The couple said that they were hiding at one or the other place as their lives were in danger and they could be killed.
Invoking article 35 of the constitution, the petitioners requested the court to provide protection to them and take steps to save their marriage.
They requested the court to order release of arrested relatives of Fida Hussain and direct the SHO to refrain from harassing them and relatives of Fida Hussain and, instead, take preventive action against the respondents.
Source: Dawn
Date:6/23/2007
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